Heraldry called escutcheons or scutcheons, from the Latin word scutum, have been, and still are, of different forms according to different times and nations. Among ancient shields, some were almost like a horse-shoe, such as is represented by n° 1. in the figure of Escutcheons; others triangular, somewhat rounded at the bottom, as n° 2. The people who inhabited Mesopotamia, now called Diarbeck, made use of this sort of shield, which it is thought they had of the Trojans. Sometimes the shield was heptagonal, that is, had seven sides, as n° 3. The first of this shape is said to have been used by the famous triumvir M. Antony. That of knights-bannet was square, like a banner, as n° 4. As to modern escutcheons, those of the Italians, particularly of ecclesiastics, are generally oval, as n° 5. The English, French, Germans, and other nations, have their escutcheons formed different ways, according to the carver's or painter's fancy: see the various examples contained from n° 6—16 of the figure. But the escutcheon of maids, widows, and of such as are born ladies, and are married to private gentlemen, is of the form of a lozenge: See n° 17—20. Sir George Mackenzie mentions one Muriel, countess of Strathern, who carried her arms in a lozenge, anno 1284, which shows how long we have been versant in heraldry.
Armorists distinguish several parts or points in escutcheons, in order to determine exactly the position of the bearings they are charged with; they are here denoted by the first nine letters of the alphabet, ranged in the following manner:
A — the dexter chief. B — the precide middle chief. C — the sinister chief. D — the honour point. E — the fess point. F — the nombril point. G — the dexter base. H — the middle precide base. I — the sinister base.
The knowledge of these points is of great importance, and ought to be well observed, for they are frequently occupied with several things of different kinds. It is necessary to observe, that the dexter side of the escutcheon is opposite to the left hand, and the sinister side to the right hand, of the person that looks on it.
Chap. II. Of Tinctures, Furs, Lines, and Differences.
Sect. I. Of Tinctures.
By tinctures is meant that variable hue of arms which is common both to shields and their bearings. According According to the French heralds, there are but seven tinctures in armoury; of which two are metals, the other five are colours.
The Metals are,
| Gold, | termed | Or. | | Silver, | Argent. |
The Colours are,
| Blue, | Azure. | | Red, | Gules. | | Green, | Vert. | | Purple, | Purpure. | | Black, | Sable. |
When natural bodies, such as animals, plants, celestial bodies, &c., are introduced into coats of arms, they frequently retain their natural colours, which is expressed in this science by the word proper.
Besides the five colours above mentioned, the English writers on heraldry admit two others, viz:
| Orange, | Tenny. | | Blood-colour, | Sanguine. |
But these two are rarely to be found in British bearings.
These tinctures are represented in engravings and drawings (the invention of the ingenious Silvester Petra Sancta, an Italian author of the 17th century) by dots and lines, as in fig. ii. No 1—9.
Or is expressed by dots.
Argent needs no mark, and is therefore plain.
Azure, by horizontal lines.
Gules, by perpendicular lines.
Vert, by diagonal lines from the dexter chief to the sinister base points.
Purpure, by diagonal lines from the sinister chief to the dexter base points.
Sable, by perpendicular and horizontal lines crossing each other.
Tenny, by diagonal lines from the sinister chief to the dexter base points, traversed by horizontal lines.
Sanguine, by lines crossing each other diagonally from dexter to sinister, and from sinister to dexter.
Sir George MacKenzie observes, that "some fantastic heralds have blazoned not only by the ordinary colours and metals, but by flowers, days of the week, parts of a man's body, &c., and have been condemned for it by the heralds of all nations. Yet the English have so far owned this fancy," (the most judicious of them, as Mr Cartwright and others, reprobate it as absurd); "that they give it for a rule, that the coats of sovereigns should be blazoned by the planets, those of noblemen by precious stones; and have suited them in the manner here set down:
| Or | Topaz | Sol. | | Argent | Pearl | Luna. | | Sable | Diamond | Saturn. | | Gules | Ruby | Mars. | | Azure | Sapphire | Jupiter. | | Vert | Emerald | Venus. | | Purpure | Amethyst | Mercury. | | Tenny | Jacinth | Dragon's-head. | | Sanguine | Sardonyx | Dragon's-tail. |
"But I crave leave to say, that these are but mere fancies; and are likewise unfit for the art, for these reasons: 1stly, The French (from whom the English derive their heraldry, not only in principles, but in words of the French language) do not only not use these different ways of blazoning, but treat them en ridicule. 2ndly, The Italian, Spanish, and Latin heralds use no such different forms, but blazon by the ordinary metals and colours. 3rdly, Art should imitate nature; and as it would be an unnatural thing in common discourse not to call red red because a prince wears it, so it is unnatural to use these terms in heraldry. And it may fall out to be very ridiculous in some arms; for instance, if a prince had for his arms an afs couchant under his burden gules, how ridiculous would it be to say he had an afs couchant Mars?—A hundred other examples might be given; but it is enough to say, that this is to confound colours with charges, and the things that are borne with colours. 4thly, It makes the art unpleasant, and deters gentlemen from studying it, and strangers from understanding what our heraldry is; nor could the arms of our princes and nobility be translated in this disguise into Latin or any other language. But that which convinces most that this is an error is, because it makes that great rule unnecessary, whereby colour cannot be put upon colour, nor metal upon metal; but this cannot hold but where metals and colours are expressed."
The English heralds give different names to the roundlet (No 10), according to its colour. Thus, if it is
| Or, Argent, Azure, Gules, Vert, Purpure, Sable, Tenny, Sanguine, |
it is called a
| Bezant, Plate, Hurt, Torseau, Pompey, Golpe, Pellet, Orange, Guze. |
The French, and all others nations, do not admit such a multiplicity of names to this figure; but call them Bezants, after an ancient coin struck at Constantinople, once Byzantium, if they are Or and Torseau; or of any other tincture, expressing the same.
Sect. II. Of Furs.
Furs represents the hairy skin of certain beasts, prepared for the doublings or linings of robes and garments of state; and as shields were anciently covered with furred skins, they are therefore used in heraldry not only for the linings of the mantles, and other ornaments of the shields, but also in the coats of arms themselves.
There are three different kinds in general use, viz.
1. Ermine; which is a field argent, powdered with black spots; their tails terminating in three hairs. (Fig. ii. No 11.)
2. Counter-ermine, where the field is sable, and the powdering white. (No 12.)
3. Vair (No 15.), which is expressed by blue and white skins, cut into the forms of little bells, ranged in rows opposite to each other, the base of the white ones